As the title suggests I am currently seeking a carry case/bag or a good strap for my Fostex FR2 LE field recorder.
Cases such as the portabrace exceed my humble budget(up to £50), and I've been told that the alternative I was interested in, found here:

I would be equally happy with a good strap, as the main reason for this purchase is simply in order to keep my hands free during recording; although a bag or case offering some degree of protection from the elements would be preferable.

If anyone could provide a recommendation or solution it would be very much appreciated.

3 Answers
3

Thanks for the shout-out, Gary. Literally forgot that I wrote that article! :-)

While I've lost any small amount of love that I had for Portabrace bags, they DO have a model specific to the FR2LE which AFAIK is the only one that has a flap to allow viewing of the side panel, which IMO is FAR more important and useful than the top strip of pots and meters. Operating the FR2LE out of a bag without being able to see that panel is frustrating, to say the least.

I'm sorry to report that it's out of your price range.

The other option that I went for is to go to a military supply store and get a US$15 first aid bag. Then get some clear marine vinyl. Some velcro, cutting, and sewing and you've got your own flapped, multi-pocket bag. Worked well for me until I went for the Portabrace case.

Check out Petrol bags. I'm not 100% sure if they have one for the FR2 LE, but I'll bet they probably do. Great, well-built modular/customizeable cases. All production sound mixers I know live by them, many sound effects recordists I know use them as well. I use one with my 702. Personally I've had bad experiences with Portabrace and have felt their bags are flimsy and thin - the one I worked with on a regular FR2 felt more like a cloth cover tgan a solid, standing, sturdy protection bag.